The Bizarre Detective Agency Chapter 45

Anna chirped like a sparrow, flitting about the detective agency without a moment's rest.

— You’re sure it’s okay for me to come with you? Oh, but what if someone sees me... What if some nosy exorcist jumps out and yells, "By the light, I banish you!" And... then you’ll help me, right? You will, won’t you? Hey, why are you so quiet...

— I will.

At the critical moment, Lu Li’s concise reply stemmed the tide of her questions.

As expected, Anna stopped addressing him directly and instead began muttering to herself. — I’ve been wearing this dress for so long, it’s embarrassing to go out in it... hmm... well, it’s not like I have anything else. Say, Lu Li, where are we going? To the sea? Or Simple Park? Daisy said a new Haunted House just opened in Simple Park. That sounds like it could be fun...

Anna’s personality was refreshingly simple; her worldview was painted in black and white, unlike the murky gray that colored the lives of most adults.

So, when Lu Li decided to bring her along as his assistant, her mind translated it as: "Lu Li feels sorry for me, so he's taking me out! I'm definitely not going to admit I'm touched!"

Lu Li wanted to correct her misconception and state plainly that he was only bringing her along as an assistant, not for a leisurely outing, but it was clearly impossible to get a word in edgewise.

— So, where are we going?

— To an abandoned psychiatric hospital, — he answered calmly.

— ...?

A look of profound confusion washed over Anna's face.

— We have an investigation at the hospital. It might be dangerous, so I decided to bring you with me, but you can refuse.

— Oh... an investigation... — Anna nodded in understanding, then sniffed with mock importance. — Then I’ll go with you. Besides, I'm technically an employee of the detective agency.

Even if it wasn't exactly a date... it still sounded rather interesting.

— I need to clarify something, — Lu Li’s even tone shattered the budding warmth in the detective agency. — Can you only possess this painting, or can you inhabit other objects as well?

Anna paused for a moment, her thoughts easily shifting to his question. — Hmm... I haven’t tried.

— Try now.

If Anna could freely possess other objects, taking her along would be far more convenient. Although she could hide herself by becoming invisible, some people were still capable of sensing a ghost's presence.

Strolling down the street with a ghost wasn't the safest course of action.

Anna did as he asked, but the result was disappointing. She couldn't enter other objects the way she could her painting. Not the alarm clock, not the music box, not the table, not even Lu Li’s hat.

After the experiment, Lu Li gave her a few more instructions for the investigation, such as their plan to leave after dark.

At that time, there would be fewer people on the streets, and it was unlikely anyone would notice a ghost at Lu Li’s side.

Anna returned to her painting to rest and prepare for the night ahead.

Lu Li made some preparations of his own: he asked Oliver to find out the locations of the police stations near the hospital and bought an umbrella from a shop.

The fog that had long blanketed the sky finally dispersed, only to reveal an even more ominous layer of clouds.

Just as the newspapers had predicted, rain was coming.

As night fell, faint yet comforting lights began to twinkle across the port city.

If one were to look at Belfast from the sea at that moment, they would see a cascade of countless lights illuminating the sky above the city as it sprawled across the mountainside.

Yet, contrary to the expected bustle, most of the streets were deserted, almost devoid of pedestrians.

A horse whinnied softly...

On Sailor Street, in front of the gates of one of the houses, a horse shifted restlessly from foot to foot, gently rocking the carriage hitched behind it.

Though the light from the houses illuminated parts of the street, the dark corners and abandoned buildings were swallowed by an impenetrable blackness.

Lu Li added more oil to the lantern and placed it on the driver's seat.

The brighter light seemed to calm the horse, and its tail stopped twitching nervously.

— The street is empty. You can come out, — Lu Li said over his shoulder, looking toward the window.

At his words, Anna appeared from behind the window frame, glancing around nervously.

— A carriage? — she asked in surprise.

— It's rented. The hospital is quite a ways off.

Thirty shillings for the rental was expensive, but it was a necessary expense.

If the technology of this world weren't in the nascent stages of the industrial era, and if the newly invented steam-powered cars didn't break down so often, Lu Li might have considered buying one for himself.

After he saved up a thousand shillings, of course.

Once she was certain no one was around, Anna floated up and dove inside the carriage.

The horse tossed its head as if it sensed something. A moment later, Lu Li climbed onto the driver's seat, sat across from Anna, and gently pulled on the reins.

Clip-clop-clop...

The horse’s hooves echoed against the cobblestones, the sound carrying through the quiet night.

It was worth noting that Lu Li’s confidence was gradually growing.

Although "confidence" wasn't quite the right word. People with a disposition as detached as Lu Li’s rarely experienced strong emotions, including fear. Perhaps "perspective" was a more accurate term.

The more he learned about ghosts and the profession of an exorcist, the more Lu Li's perspective broadened.

Just a week ago, Lu Li couldn’t have imagined leaving the warmth and light of his detective agency after dark in the company of a ghost, let alone that he would kill several ghosts with his own hands.

But then something unforeseen happened. Anna, hidden inside the carriage, didn't move along with it. When the carriage started forward, she... fell out.

In that moment, the mundane laws of physics, so often overlooked, asserted themselves with a vengeance against the supernatural. Though Anna, recovering quickly, zipped after the carriage and climbed back in like a normal passenger.

— How did you do that? — Lu Li asked, turning his head with curiosity.

He had assumed that in this world, technology would be completely suppressed by the mystical, but it seemed even ghosts had to obey certain physical laws.

Did that mean if technology in this world continued to advance, the future might see the invention of ghost-killing nuclear bombs?

— You have to... imbue the carriage with your essence, — Anna explained, embarrassed.

Lu Li nodded and fell into a thoughtful silence.

The night shrouded everything in a hazy mist.

The sky remained overcast, and the moon was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps this world didn't even have a satellite like the Moon.

Oliver had provided a map so Lu Li wouldn’t get lost.

The abandoned psychiatric hospital was located on the far side of Sugard Mountain—the name of the mountain on which Belfast was built.

Unlike the ocean-facing side where Belfast thrived, the far side of Sugard Mountain was like a dark, forgotten corner.

For all of Belfast's vibrant, noisy life, the reverse slope of the mountain was just as abandoned and desolate.